Israel and Hezbollah have agreed to withdraw troops from southern Lebanon before the end of January. The area will then be secured by the Lebanese army and UN peacekeepers as part of the agreed ceasefire terms.
advertisementThe United States and Lebanon said Monday that Lebanese troops have begun deploying to the southern coastal city of Nakura after Israeli forces withdrew as part of a cease-fire agreement signed in November.
Footage released by the Lebanese army shows military vehicles supported by the UN Interim Force passing through Naqoura in the Tire region. According to the military, when they arrive, specialized units will conduct an investigation to remove unexploded ordnance.
In a statement, the military urged residents to avoid the area and follow instructions.
The deployment of troops to Nakura follows similar measures in the southern cities of Khiam and Shamaa, where Israeli forces withdrew after a ceasefire between Hezbollah and Israel came into effect.
U.S. envoy Amos Horstein, who helped broker a ceasefire that ended 14 months of war, attended a meeting in Beirut on Monday and met Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati.
Hostein, who is also U.S. President Joe Biden’s Middle East adviser, insisted that the phased withdrawal of Israeli troops was proceeding as planned, but did not confirm whether the withdrawal would be completed within 60 days under the terms of the deal.
“I have every confidence from what I have seen today and the reports from the field that things are going as they should,” Hochstein said. “I think the Lebanese military is doing its job very, very well.”
“There are 20 days left until the 60th. “We will continue the same work that led to the successful evacuation and deployment we saw today,” he added.
Israel and Hezbollah agreed to withdraw their troops from southern Lebanon before the end of the month. The area will then be secured by the Lebanese Army and UN peacekeepers as part of the agreement.
Separately, Gaza officials said an Israeli airstrike killed at least three people, including two women, in Bureij, a Palestinian refugee camp in central Gaza, on Monday night.
The war between Israel and Hamas in Gaza has killed more than 45,800 Palestinians, most of them women and children, according to the Gaza Health Ministry.
The war began on October 7, 2023, when Hamas-led militants launched a large-scale surprise attack across the border, killing about 1,200 people (mainly civilians) and abducting about 250.
About 100 hostages are still being held in Gaza, and at least a third of them are believed to be dead.
